A leader in art and design education since its founding in 1896, Parsons has cultivated outstanding artists, designers, scholars, businesspeople, and community leaders for more than a century. Parsons has had a presence in Paris since 1921.

Students enrolled at Parsons Paris develop creative and critical thinking skills and apply them to challenges including environmental and economic sustainability and social concerns. Parsons' network of interconnected design laboratories enables students to explore global phenomena at a number of sites and scales of engagement in on-campus research and initiatives with international partners that focus on urban life in Paris, New York, and elsewhere.

Located in one of the most vibrant creative economies in the world, the program takes full advantage of Paris, offering extraordinary educational, cultural, and professional opportunities for the growing number of students who seek a range of experience in art, design,
media, technology, and culture. Parsons Paris is in the process of developing partnership agreements with a number of cultural institutions and schools to promote and share its philosophy and foster the development of design thinking and process. By maintaining a long-term presence in this energetic and creative city, Parsons Paris
aspires to make an important contribution to and benefit from the interaction with the dynamic Parisian art and design community.

The Parsons Paris curriculum provides students with the tools to master a single discipline while helping them develop skills relevant to a range of fields. The practical knowledge Parsons students acquire and the methods of collaboration and inquiry they learn can be applied in a variety of contexts. The curricula offer opportunities for cross-disciplinary study and foster connections between the classroom and the urban environment. As in Parsons New York, in Paris the approach to learning reflects a tradition of challenging convention, anticipating trends, and improving the world—a tradition embodied by Parsons alumni, who create art and design that matters.